Moroccan Meatball Stuffed Pitas
Moroccan Meatball Stuffed Pitas are filled with homemade hummus, moist turkey meatballs made with warm Moroccan spices like ginger, turmeric, and coriander, and then topped with creamy, fresh and bright lemon yogurt sauce. Easy, Fun, Delicious, and Good for You!
Servings 4 people
Calories 465kcal
Ingredients
Moroccan Turkey Meatballs
- 1 lb White Meat Ground Turkey, free range, raised without antibiotics
- ¾ cup breadcrumbs
- 1 Egg
- 2 cloves Garlic
- 3 teaspoon Ginger, minced
- 1 teaspoon Turmeric
- 1 teaspoon Ground Coriander
- ½ teaspoon Ground Cayenne Pepper
- 2 Tbls Parsley, finely chopped
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- ½ teaspoon Fresh Ground Pepper
- 1 teaspoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Hummus
- 1 can Chickpeas
- 1 Tbls Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1 clove Garlic
- ¼ cup water
Lemon Yogurt Sauce
- 5 oz Plain Greek Yogurt
- 1 Lemon
- 1 teaspoon Parsley, finely chopped
- ¼ teaspoon Salt
- Fresh Ground Pepper, to taste
Other
- 4 Pita Breads, cut in half
- 2 Tbls Parsley, chopped for garnish
Instructions
Prep-Ahead: Ingredients
- Mince 2 cloves garlic.
- Peel and mince about 1 inch piece of ginger to get 2 tsp.
- Chop 5 tbls parsley...2 tbls for the meatballs, 1 tbls for the lemon yogurt sauce, 2 for garnish.
Prep-Ahead: Meatballs
- To a small mixing bowl, add 1 egg, the 2 cloves minced garlic, 2 teaspoon minced ginger, ½ teaspoon Turmeric, 1 teaspoon Ground Coriander, ½ teaspoon Cayenne Pepper, ½ teaspoon salt, ½ fresh ground pepper. Mix together thoroughly with a fork.
- To a large mixing bowl, add the Ground Turkey, the egg and spice mixture, the 2 Tbls chopped parsley, and the ¾ cup bread crumbs. Using your hands or a large fork, mix to thoroughly combine.
- Make small meatballs that are about an inch in diameter. Recipe makes approximately 26 meatballs. At this point, you can store them in the fridge, freeze them or cook them.
Prep-Ahead: Hummus and Yogurt Sauce
- To a food processor, add 1 clove garlic, 1 tbls extra virgin olive oil, ¼ teaspoon fresh ground pepper, and ¼ cup water. Blend until smooth. Rinse and drain 1 can of chickpeas. Add them to the food processor and blend until smooth.
- Zest the entire lemon, then quarter. To a small bowl, add the yogurt, the lemon zest and the juice from 1 quarter of the lemon. Add 1 teaspoon chopped parsley. Mix and then add salt and fresh ground pepper to taste.
Cook and Assemble
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Drizzle a teaspoon of olive oil on a large sheet pan and rub it around to coat the bottom.
- Turn the oven setting to broil and place the turkey meatballs under the broiler for 5-6 minutes or just until starting to brown.
- Then move down to center rack and turn oven setting back to Bake at 375 degrees. Bake for 15 minutes until internal temp reaches 165.
- Wrap pitas in aluminum and put in the oven to warm for the last 10 minutes of the meatball cooking time to warm through.
- Open the Pita Pocket, add the hummus, then the meatballs, top with yogurt sauce and parsley, and Enjoy!
Notes
- Can I freeze the Turkey Meatballs raw? Yes, these freeze incredibly well! Place the raw meatballs on a sheet pan and then directly into the freezer to flash freeze. Once they are frozen, you can transfer them to a storage bag. They will keep in the freezer for 4-5 months. Then bake them in the oven 400 F degrees directly from the freezer for 30 minutes.
- Can I make these meatballs with another meat? The meatballs in this recipe can be made with ground turkey, chicken beef, lamb, or pork.
- What cheese would be best for these pita bread sandwiches? There are several cheese options that would be great added to these pitas. You can add crumbled feta cheese, goat cheese, ricotta salata, or even parmesan.
